How Boston Red Sox can fix pitching staff for 2020 and beyond
Embrace the Opener
In 2018, the Tampa Bay Rays introduced the baseball world to the concept of “the opener,” essentially a bullpen day featuring a nominal starter expected to pitch just one or two innings followed by a “bulk reliever” for the next three to five innings. Led by openers Ryne Stanek (who started 29 games but only pitched 66.1 innings), Diego Castillo and Sergio Romo and bulk relievers Ryan Yarbrough (who started but six games but racked up 147.1 IP and 16 wins) and Yonny Chirinos, the concept worked incredibly well as the Rays overachieved their way to a 90-72 record.
Other teams have since embraced the concept. The Oakland A’s even used an opener in last season’s AL Wild Card game, with decidedly negative results. And in spite of adding traditional starting pitchers Charlie Morton and Tyler Glasnow to their rotation, the Rays have continue the practice this season and currently hold the American League’s second wild card spot.
However, to truly embrace the opener means far more than a willingness to schedule more bullpen days during the season. Looking closer, there is a clear strategy in the way the Rays deployed their openers and bulk relievers that the Red Sox could benefit from.
Stanek, for example, is a righty and one of the major’s hardest throwers, averaging about 98 MPH on his fastball with tremendous spin, while also featuring a slider and a splitter to keep hitters off balance. He’s got the kind of stuff you want facing a team’s best hitters, e.g. the top of the lineup. Fellow openers Castillo and Andrew Kittredge are cut from similar cloth.
Yarbrough, on the other hand, is a lefty whose fastball seldom cracks 90 and whose best, and most frequently thrown pitch, is an 85 MPH cutter. Stylistically, they could not be more different. Which makes them an ideal opener / bulk reliever pairing. If the goal of every major league pitcher is to disrupt a hitter’s timing, these two do a fine job of that. Fellow bulk relievers Chirinos and Jalen Beeks, while harder throwers than Yarbrough, still typically clock in 5-8 MPH slower than the opener they follow.
A similar dynamic could be created with pitchers currently on the Boston Red Sox staff. David Price, for example, no longer can reach back for the mid-90s heat he once featured in his younger days. His fastball now sits around 92 MPH and, it could be argued, he should be featuring his very good off-speed pitches more often. Maybe he’d see better results leading with his curve and cutter over five or six innings if he followed a flame throwing righty like Eovaldi or Matt Barnes?
In a similar manner, the hard throwing lefty Hernandez seems tailor made to open in front of the softer tossing Porcello. And Wright and his knuckleball could open for just about anyone else.
Of course, an effective opener / bulk reliever combo is not just about pitch speeds and throwing arm, but also about pitch types, arm angle and approach. Colten Brewer, for example, throws about 90% cutters and curveballs, while Travis Lakins features a similar arsenal. But Cashner doesn’t throw a cutter and seldom throws curves, relying instead on his mid-90s fastball and a change that neither Brewer nor Lakins possess. Could pairing them up achieve better results for all of them?
In other words, to best maximize the varied talents on this Boston Red Sox pitching staff, it’s time for Cora to think about pitcher sequencing as a way of putting his pitchers in the best position to succeed. A carefully considered opener / bulk reliever strategy may help him do just that.